Update on the Muslim murderer who attacked the Seattle Jewish Federation yesterday: Muslim charged in Seattle Jewish slaying.

You may have thought it was an act of terrorism. But the authorities know better.

SEATTLE (Reuters) - A lone gunman burst into a Jewish organization in downtown Seattle on Friday, killing one woman and wounding five others in what authorities were calling a hate crime.

The gunman, Naveed Afzal Haq, 31, was arrested without a struggle at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, where the shooting took place. He was later charged by Seattle police with one count of murder and five counts of attempted murder.

Haq is a U.S. citizen, police said, and their initial conversation with him by phone while he was inside the building indicated that he was a Muslim.

Police would not disclose the content of the conversation, but Amy Wasser-Simpson, the federation’s vice president, told the Seattle Times in a story on its Web site the man got past security at the building and shouted, “I’m a Muslim American; I’m angry at Israel,” before he began shooting.

“This was a purposeful, hateful act as far as we know, by an individual acting alone,” said Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels at a news conference, adding “This is a crime of hate.”

Authorities said they were “taking every precaution” in searching for explosives and additional suspects and were monitoring the city’s synagogues and Jewish organizations.

Notice: this murderous attack took place on a Friday, the Islamic day of prayer. What are the chances that this Pakistani came directly from a mosque, after hearing a hateful sermon about the Lebanon crisis? Pretty good, I’d say.

But don’t worry. The mosques are being protected from us bigoted Islamophobic Americans.

“We are also protecting mosques, because there is always the concern of retaliatory crime,” said Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske.

UPDATE at 7/29/06 8:32:25 am:

The Seattle Times has a painfully ironic yearbook picture of Haq: Hatred hits home: 6 shot at Jewish office.